Zach Edey has just one regular-season game left in his unforgettable collegiate career.
Edey and the Purdue Boilermakers take on the Wisconsin Badgers at 12:30 p.m. ET Sunday (watch on FOX and the FOX Sports app), which will be Edey’s final home game at Mackey Arena. The 7-foot-4 big man from Canada announced that he will not return to the Boilermakers for his final year of eligibility and will instead declare for the 2024 NBA Draft at the end of the season.
Edey led Purdue to a conference title last season but has not experienced similar success in the Big Dance. In fact, he has never gotten past the Sweet 16 and has lost in the Round of 64 in two of three March Madness appearances.
Purdue has been dominant once again this season, currently ranked third in both the AP Top 25 Poll and in the KenPom rankings. In the Division-I NET rankings, the Boilermakers are ranked second behind the Houston Cougars, and have more Quad 1 wins than any team in the country, with 11.
But despite the wildly successful two-year run Edey and the Boilermakers have had, many still point to the team’s loss to 16-seed Fairleigh Dickinson in the first round of last year’s NCAA Tournament. It was the largest upset since the NCAA Tournament expanded to 64 teams in 1985, causing shock waves throughout the college basketball world.
With that being said, Purdue is expected to secure a No. 1 seed again in this year’s Big Dance, and all eyes will be on Edey and the Boilermakers when they likely go up against another 16-seed in the opening round. Matt Painter’s team is currently +700 to win it all, tied for the second-best odds of any team. Regardless of how far the Boilermakers go in the tournament, Edey has etched his name in the record books with his play over the last two seasons.
FOX Sports Research conducted a deep dive into how statistically dominant Edey has been throughout his career. Let’s take a look.
Career
Purdue’s all-time career leader in rebounds with 1,197Fourth in Big Ten history in rebounds with 1,197; needs 21 to move into thirdPurdue’s all-time career leader in double-doubles with 60One of five players with 60 double-doubles since the 2020-21 season (Armando Bacot, Enrique Freeman, Norchad Omier, Fardaws Aimaq)Second all-time in Purdue history in scoring with 2,257 points; needs 67 points to break the record (Rick Mount, 2,323)Tenth all-time in Big Ten history in scoring with 2,257 points; needs 67 points to pass Purdue’s Rick Mount for sixth-mostFifth player in Purdue history to win Big Ten Player of the Year (last season), and first since Caleb Swanigan in the 2016-17 seasonWill likely be the fourth player in Big Ten history to win Big Ten Player of the Year multiple times (Jim Jackson, Mateen Cleaves, Luka Garza), and the first Purdue player to do soAverages 20.0 PPG against ranked opponents since the 2021-22 season, the third-highest among all players with a minimum of 10 games vs. ranked opponents in that span (Drew Timme, Hunter Dickinson)Edey has four career games with 30 points and 15 rebounds on 75% shooting. No other player in Division I has more than two such games since 2000Edey has seven career games with 30 points and 15 rebounds, the second-most of any Division I player in the last 15 years (Mike Daum- 11)This Season
Edey is the only player in Division I to have recorded a game with 35 points and 15 reboundsRecorded 35 points, 15 rebounds, on 75% shooting against Michigan, the first 35-15 game with a 75% FG percentage in five seasonsHad zero turnovers that game, which made it the first 35-15 game on 75% shooting and zero turnovers in 20 seasonsHad zero turnovers that game, which made it the first 35-15 game on 75% shooting and zero turnovers in 20 seasonsSecond in Division I in scoring (24.1 PPG) and third in rebounding (11.7 RPG)One of four players in the country to average 20 PPG and 10 RPG (Vonterious Woolbright, Dillon Jones, Saint Thomas). He is the only player in the Power 6 to do soOne of seven players in Power 6 to shoot over 60%One of four 7-footers in Division I to shoot over 70% from the free-throw line (min. 100 attempts)Currently, the only player in Division I to average 20.0 PPG on 60% shootingOne of four players in Division I to have 20 double-doublesRecorded three straight 30-point double-doubles in January, becoming the first high-major player to do so since Michael Beasley did it in four straight games in 2008Last Season
Became the fourth player since 1997 to record 30 points and 10 rebounds in back-to-back conference tournament games (Tim Duncan, Evan Turner, Deandre Ayton)Became the first Big Ten player in 25 seasons to have multiple 30-point, 15-rebound games in a seasonBecame the third high-major player in the last 20 years to rank in the top 10 of Division I in both scoring and rebounding (Michael Beasley, Kevin Durant); he is on pace to do it again this seasonBecame the first player in NCAA history with 750 points, 400 rebounds, 70 blocks, and 50 assists in a season; he is on pace to do it again this seasonBecame the second player, and the first since Ohio State’s Gary Bradds in 1964, to lead the Big Ten in points, rebounds, and field goal percentage; he is on pace to do it again this seasonRecorded eight straight 20-point games in November/December, the most for a 7-footer in the last 25 yearsSwept all six major National Player of the Year Awards: The Wooden Award, The Naismith Award, The Big O Trophy (USBWA), NABC National Player of the Year, the AP National Player of the Year, and The Sporting News National Player of the YearRead more:
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